


Step, Step, Heartbe(a)t

by Kaddi



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Dancing, Fluff, M/M, as in Yami appears near the end so if you're looking for a meal, it's more like a snack, lowkey pining, minor Jounouchi/Yami
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-16
Updated: 2020-09-16
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:14:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26500453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaddi/pseuds/Kaddi
Summary: "We're trying a simple Discofox today," Anzu announced, arms akimbo. "I'll beat the standard dances into you and if it's the last thing I'll do!"Gathered in front of her were her friends and students for this lesson – Yuugi, Jounouchi, and Honda. None of them had really planned to be here.---Yuugi and Jounouchi (try to) dance together
Relationships: Jounouchi Katsuya | Joey Wheeler/Mutou Yuugi
Kudos: 19





	Step, Step, Heartbe(a)t

**Author's Note:**

> i watched jounouchi and yuugi's duel near the end of the duelist kingdom recently, and during that duel bakura (i think) says that duels have a certain rhythm to them, and if you control the rhythm you hold the advantage.  
> so of course, i had to write some dancing!

"We're trying a simple Discofox today," Anzu announced, arms akimbo. "I'll beat the standard dances into you and if it's the last thing I'll do!"

Gathered in front of her were her friends and students for this lesson – Yuugi, Jounouchi, and Honda. None of them had really planned to be here, and they looked upon their teacher with something akin to fear.

"I still don't get _why_ , though," Jounouchi complained, ever the defiant one.

"You'll never know when you'll need them," Anzu winked. "Besides, who wants a partner that can't even dance something like Discofox?"

Did the other Yuugi know how to dance Discofox? Yuugi wondered amusedly. He wasn't sure. Dancing wasn't a topic they talked about a lot. Still, he was very happy with his partner. Admittedly, he knew this wasn't the kind of partner Anzu meant.

As if sensing that Jounouchi would keep complaining, she clapped her hands. "Now then, as for the _dance_ partners: I pick Honda."

With a fist pump Honda joined her side, now grinning alongside her. Jounouchi crossed his arms and frowned.

"Why do you get to pick?"

"Because _I_ know what I'm doing. And I don't trust you to not step on my feet constantly."

"Rude!" Jounouchi fumed amidst the laughter of his friends. "Why not pick Yuugi then?"

"What, you don't want to dance with him?"

"It's okay if you don't want to," Yuugi assured his friend.

But Jounouchi could already imagine the hurt forming on his face and he wasn't about to let that stand. He hadn't meant it that way at all.

"I do want to!" he declared, blushing faintly. "We'll show her how well we do as partners! Right, Yuugi?"

Yuugi smiled brightly. "Yeah!!"

Anzu laughed. "That's more like it! But seriously, there's another reason I'm splitting us like this: height difference!"

"Someone's been reading too much romance," Jounouchi teased.

"What, you're talking about yourself? As I was saying, height difference is important. For us, it's helpful because I know you awkward nerds won't look each other in the eye – you'll stare at your feet instead. But that's a no-go! You can't dance if you're staring at the ground. If you're not at eye level, you can more comfortably avoid eye contact without making that mistake."

Pleased with her reasoning, Anzu crossed her arms. Yuugi couldn't deny the logic behind it. Even on good days he had trouble holding eye contact. His hands were already sweaty and they hadn't even started dancing yet.

"Here's another convenience for you. Instead of dancing closely, you can just hold hands like this."

She offered both hands to Honda, palms up, and wrangled with him until he put his hands in hers.

"I can lead," he claimed indignantly.

"Absolutely not," she replied.

Her dominance asserted, Anzu began teaching them the simple step order. One-two-tap, one-two-tap. Back and forth and on and on. It looked very easy – how hard could taking two steps and then tapping your foot be? – yet Honda still stumbled, not used to being led and his body too tense to follow. His hands looked so big in Anzu's more delicate ones. Yuugi looked down at his own hand and wondered how it would look in Jounouchi's.

Gradually, Honda relaxed, and their dance lost the tug o' war quality it had.

"Remember, even when you're stepping towards your partner, you're still the one who leads. You give them the signal to pull back."

Satisfied with Honda's performance for now, she let go of his hands – which he inconspicuously wiped on his pants – and rummaged for her phone. Once she got it, she scrolled through a list of songs as she told Yuugi and Jounouchi to meanwhile get into position.

Jounouchi claimed the right to lead. He grabbed Yuugi's hands, not waiting for him to reach out, and tugged him closer. His grip was strong yet surprisingly gentle. Yuugi, without thinking, stroked his thumbs over his knuckles. Several scars, ranging in size and origin, adorned it. They felt rough against his unmarred fingers.

A soft pop song began to play from Anzu's phone, lifting some of the awkwardness with it. Anzu put her phone away and returned to her partner, once more guiding them through the steps. She explained some more things as she went, but her voice soon faded into the background because Yuugi's focus was on something else. It hinged on the hands holding his.

Dancing with Jounouchi wasn't as easy as he had imagined. He felt less like he was led and more like he was dragged to and fro, push following pull. Still, he kept his eyes resolutely on Jounouchi's chest to avoid looking down. His friend was wearing a graphic tee today. It was one of his favourites, and he owned it for so long that the fabric had holes around the seams near the shoulders and armpits. That's why he mostly wore a jacket over that particular shirt, though he had discarded it for this dance lesson.

Yuugi could feel Jounouchi's eyes on him and chanced a look at his face. The intensity of his stare made him flinch – it seemed that what Anzu had said about eye contact had really gotten to him. Yuugi flushed under the attention because of which he had an even harder time following Jounouchi'slead (who, by this point, wasn't even holding the rhythm of the song anymore).

"Jounouchi–

In that moment, Jounouchi pulled on their hands again, sending Yuugi tumbling into his chest. Reflexively, Jounouchi opened his arms to catch him, letting out a soft _oof_ when Yuugi hit him.

Yuugi froze there, which was bad, because Jounouchi's arms were still around him and his ear was pressed right below his friend's heartbeat. The surprised _thud-thud-thud_ matched his own rhythm – how ironic was it that now they were finally in tune.  
"You okay there, Yuugi?" Jounouched asked, poking his side.

"I-I'm fine!" Yuugi squeaked. He hastily pulled back. His face had to be completely red now, flaming with embarrassment. Honda and Anzu stopped in their tracks and their attention added on top of it only made him feel more awkward.

"What'd you do to poor Yuugi, Jounouchi?" Honda asked.

"Huh? I didn't do anything!" Jounouchi said.

"It's okay!" Yuugi rubbed his arm. "I just tripped."

"Seriously, you guys," Anzu huffed.

"Sorry, Anzu..."

"You take that sorry back, Yuugi." She affectionately tossed an arm over his shoulders. "Some things can't be helped."

The song trickled to an end. Anzu fumbled with her phone to switch it to another one, a more upbeat tune. Their eyes fell to the indie album cover, which depicted a singing Dark Magician Girl.

"Actually, I think I know how to get through to you guys, "Anzu said. In a deeper, faux-somber voice she added, "The path to your hearts has revealed itself to me."

At this Yuugi laughed, which made Anzu grin at him.

"Do tell," Jounouchi said.

"Dancing is like a game of Duel Monsters. It's all about the rhythm! And the one who leads controls the rhythm. It's not about forcing your partner, it's about getting them to do what you expect."

"Why didn't you say so in the first place! That's so much easier!" Jounouchi excitedly took hold of Yuugi's hands again.

"Actually, Jounouchi," Yuugi said and gave them a squeeze. "Can I lead this time?"

For a moment Jounouchi just blinked at him, like that option hadn't occurred to him. Then, at Yuugi's prompting, they swapped positions.

"Alright. I trust you, Yuugi," Jounouchi said with a grin.

Yuugi smiled back. "You can depend on me."

In the background, Anzu rolled her eyes and muttered something about dramatics, like she had not held big speeches about trust and friendship before.

Yuugi hummed along to the song, nodding his head to the rhythm, as he waited for the ideal point to enter into the dance. He could do this. Dancing was just another game, he was good at those.

When the chorus came to an end, he saw his chance. Although as the lead he was supposed to start the dance with forward steps, he let Jounouchi come towards him to judge his style. One-two-tap, and the defense was complete. One-two-tap, and Yuugi went on the offense. He could envision the ebb and tide, all he had to do was lead Jounouchi into it. It was still a bit of a struggle at first, because Jounouchi did not yield as much as Yuugi expected and tried to claim more space than he was granted. But that was part of the fun. It wouldn't be the Jounouchi he knew otherwise.

Somehow, during their little game, they had gotten closer to each other. There wasn't an awkward arm-length gap between them anymore. If he wanted to, he could easily reach Jounouchi's waist, maybe even his back. His heart beat a bit too fast for the rhythm of the song. When he dared to tear his gaze away from where it lingered on Jounouchi's graphic tee, he met his best friend's eyes.

"Having fun?" Jounouchi asked with a grin. His usually loud voice was subdued into something almost shy.

Yuugi nodded. "This is kinda nice, isn't it?"

True, the dance itself wasn't terribly engaging, but the movements kept his mind from wandering off. And with a partner like Jounouchi, it was bound to be fun. His partner really made up the difference. Speaking of.... his other partner, the other him, he wondered if he would like to dance, too.

"Oh yeah, does the other Yuugi wanna dance, too?" Jounouchi asked in that moment, which made Yuugi grin. Fools seldom differ, huh?"

He hummed thoughtfully and closed his eyes, silently offering the other him to take control if he wanted. With some gentle prodding he soon found himself back in his soul room, ready to watch – or feel, it was weird to describe – the events to follow.

Yami opened his eyes, momentarily disoriented in the middle of the dance, latching onto Jounouchi as his focal point. He was greeted with a beaming smile and a squeeze of his hands.

"Oooh, there you are, Yuugi!" Jounouchi whispered. Then he grimaced and moved to sheepishly rub his neck, though he quickly aborted that. "So, uh. I never asked but is it... okay? That I call you Yuugi, too?"

Yami blinked. Though he had not extensively talked about this with someone other than Yuugi, their friends had also realized that he was not simply a different facet of his partner. They were alike, and yet Yami was his own, separate self. Still, he didn't mind what he was called, neither Yuugi nor by his friends. He hadn't expected to be asked. Certainly not in a situation such as this. But he felt strangely touched.

"It's okay," Yami smirked. "You say it so endearingly."

Abruptly, Jounouchi let go of Yami's hands to cover his face. "Why would you say that," he moaned. "That's so embarrassing."

"I only answered your question honestly," Yami said. "Now, shall we continue?"

Jounouch peeled his hands away from his face, which was still reddened, and offered them to Yami. But Yami only took one hand, stepping closer to put his other hand below Jounouchi's shoulder blades, the way a proper dancer ought to.

"Let's level up, shall we?"

Jounouchi peered down at him with a baffled expression. Hesitantly, he put his hand on Yami's upper arm. Everything about him was warm. His hands on Yami, his back, even his heart. Yami would treat it with care

"You don't need to worry. Just trust me."

Jounouchi grinned. "Always."

**Author's Note:**

> i hope you enjoyed another fic straight from my ms notepad to you! i'm kidding, i did read this over before, i dont think i could ever post a completely unedited fic  
> anyway, let me know if you liked bit! i'm having a blast writing and experiencing yugioh for the first time <3


End file.
